international comps were up 7. so costco responding to positive action. i think we're getting people coming out on the podium in advance of the many speaking. by the way, later on today, one of the ceos of home depot, ken frazier of merck, might be tar kent. marisa mayer of yahoo. brian roberts. our employer year. back to headquarters -- here we go. here is the president of the united states. >> good to see you. hey. thank you. thank you so much. thank you, everybody. please have a seat. thank you.

thank you very much. please have a seat, except you guys. well, good morning, everybody. there's been a lot of talk here in washington about the deadlines we're facing on taxes and deficits. these deadlines will be coming up very soon, but today is important, because i want to make sure everybody understands, this debate is not just about numbers. it's a set of major decisions that are going to affect millions of families all across this country in very significant ways. and their voices, the voices of the american people, have to be part of this debate. so i asked some friends of mine here to join me, some folks from here in the area. our ultimate goal is an agreement that gets our long-term deficit under control

in a way that is fair and balanced. that kind of agreement would be good for our businesses, good for our economy, it would be good for our children's future. i believe that both parties can agree on a framework that does that in the coming weeks. in fact, my hope is to get this done before christmas. but the place where we already have, in theory at least, complete agreement right now, is on middle-class taxes. as i've said before, we have two choices. if congress does nothing, every family in america will see their taxes automatically go up at the beginning of next year, starting january 1st, every family in america will see their taxes go up. are a typical middle-class family of four would so its income taxes go up by $2200. $2200 out of people's pockets.

that means less money for buying groceries, less money for filling prescriptions, less money for buying diapers. it means a tougher choice between paying the rent and paying tuition and middle-class families can't afford that. by the way, businesses can't afford it, either. yesterday i sat down with small business owners who stressed this point, that economists predict if taxes go up on the middle class next week consumers will spend nearly $200 billion less on things like cars, clothes and furniture. that obviously means fewer customers. that cuts into business profits. that makes businesses less likely to invest and hire, which means fewer jobs, and that can drab our entire economy down. the good news is there's a better option. right now, as we speak, congress

can pass a law that would prevent a tax high on the first $250,000 of everybody's income. everybody's. that means that 98% of americans, and 97% of small businesses wouldn't see their income taxes go up by a sing the dime. 98% of americans 97% of small businesses would not see their taxes go up by a single dime. even the wealthiest americans would still get a tax cut on the first $250,000 of their income. so it's not like folks who make more than 250 aren't get a tax break, too. they're getting a tax break on the first 250, just like everybody else. families and small businesses would therefore be able to enjoy some peace of mind heading into christmas and heading into the new year. it would give us more time than nextr work together on a comprehensive plan to bring down

our deficits, to streamline our tax system, to do it in a balanced way, including asks the wealthiest americans to pay a little more so we can still invest in things like education, training, science and research. now, i know some of this may sound familiar to you, because we talked a lot about this during the campaign. this shouldn't be a surprise to anybody. this was a major debate in the presidential campaign and in congressional campaigns all across the country, and a clear majority of americans -- not just democrats, but also a lot of republicans and a lot of independents agreed we should have a balanced approach to deficit reduction that doesn't hurt the economy hand doesn't hurt middle-class families. i'm glad to see, if you've been reading the papers lately, that more and more republicans in congress seem to be agrees with this idea that we should have a balanced approach. so if both parties agree we should not raise taxes on middle-class families, let'sb

gin our work with where we agree. the senate's already passed a bill that keeps income taxes from going up on middle-class families. democrats in the house are ready to vote for that same bill today. if we can get a few house republicans to agree as well, i'll sign this bill as soon as congress sends it my way. i've got to repeat, i've got a pen. i'm ready to sign it. [ applause ] >> so my point here today is to say let's approach this problem with the middle class in mind. the folks who are behind me and the millions of people across the country who they represent. the american people are watching what we do. the middle-class families, folks working hard to get into the middle class, they're watching what we do right now. if there's one thing i have learned, when the american

people speak loudly enough, lo and behold congress listens. you know, some of you may remember that a year ago during our last big fight to protect midd middle-class families, tens of thousands of working americans called, tweeted, e-mailed their representatives asking them to do the right thing. sure enough, it worked. the same thing happened earlier this year when college students across the country stood up and demanded that congress keep rates low on the student loans. congress got the message loud and clear, and they may sure that interest rates on student longs did not go up. so the lesson is that when enough people get involved, we have a pretty good track record of actually making congress work. that's important, because this is our biggest challenge yet, and one we can only meet together. so in the interest of making sure that everybody makes their voices heard, last week we asked people to tell us -- what would

a $2,000 tax hike mean to them? some families told us it would make it more difficult for them to send their kids to college. others said it would make it tougher for them to cover the cost of prescription drugs. some said it would make it tough to make the mortgage. lynn lion from "newport news" she just wants to see cooperation in washington. she said, let's show the rest of the world that we are adults and living in a democracy, we can solve our problems by working together. that's what they debate is all about. that's why it's so important that as many americans as possible send a message that we need to keep moving forward. so today i'm asking congress to listen to the people who sent us here to serve. i'm asking americans all across the country to make your voice heard. tell members of congress what a $2,000 tax hike would mean to

you. call your members of congress, write them an e-mail, post it on their facebook walls, you can tweet it using the hashtag my2k. now y2k, but my2k. we figured that would make it easier to remember. i'm doing my part. i'm sitting down with ceos, labor leaders, talking to leaders in congress. i am ready and able and willing and excited to go ahead and get this issue resolved in a bipartisan fashion so that american families, american businesses have some certainty going into next year. we can do it in a balanced and fairway, but our first job is to make sure the taxes don't go up, and since we all theoretically agree on that, we should go ahead and get that done. if we get that done, a lot of

the other stuff will be easier. so in light of just sort of spreading this message, i'm going to be visiting pennsylvania on friday to talk with folks in a small business there that are trying to make sure that they're filling their christmas orders -- we've been listening to president obama make comments at the white house today regardless the fiscal cliff in front of the middle class taxpayers as the white house has gathered them behind the president. he says he hopes to get a deal done on the cliff by christmas. perhaps most pointedly for all of you watching, he says the american people are watching what we do, we certainly know that wall street is watching. the markets have gone through a number of gyrations over the last 48 hours after comments yesterday from harry reid, the senate majority lead erbil, mitch mcconnell as well today. john boehner, the house speaker delivers his comments and now

the president a couple hours before he meets with several of the nation's ceos on the economy and the fiscal cliff. let's go down to washington and get some reaction from our john harwood, who's been listening in. john, i think it's fair to say that the house speaker sounded a bit more conciliatory today, saying things like he's willing to put revenue on the table, yet again he's optimistic a deal can be reached. i'm not sure the president sounded so much. >> reporter: what you heard there, scott, was the president trying to leverage his advantage in public opinion. remember a couple things, first he just won the election. second of all, his position on raising taxes on top earners is very popular in the country, well over 60% of the american people say they want that to happen. you've begun to hear some republicans say they ought to do what the president just asked for. tom cole, a conservative congressman from oklahoma, former executive director of the republican national committee.

he said yesterday republicans should just take the deal the president is proposing on the 98%, extend those tax cuts, and then fight over the contours of a tax increase for the top 2%. that is an indication that the republican position is weakening and the president's trying to push that ball down the field a bit further and caught it to weaken further. what's the substance of what you think will take place later in the white house, including lloyd blankfein. >> reporter: i think what he's trying to do -- scott, can you still hear me? >> reporter: i don't know if you can hear me, but i'll say what i think the president is doing is trying to orchestrate some outside support from those ceos and get them to provide air cover for members of congress to vote for some tax increases. >> john harwood at the white house for us on the north lawn. as we just listened to president obama in front of the middle-class taxpayers make

comments regards the fiscal cliff, saying he hopes to get a deal done before christmas. on the way we'll have more analysis of this cliffhanger with two white house insiders who say we very well might go over the fiscal cliff. not exactly words that the markets perhaps are prepared to here. tony fratto, the former deputy press secretary under president george w. bush, and jared bernstein. both men will join us life. and the man many believe should have gotten the top post at yahoo. what ross levinsohn thinks, and of course the direction that marisa mayer is taking right now. you won't believe what the ceo of groupon just said at a conference in new york city. we're going to tell you exactly what it is, just after the break.

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welcome back to "fast money halftime report." we want to get some money on the traders, but the market gyrations we have seen. it's even happening as we're on the air today. the nasdaq negative. in fact all three of the major averages. on the set with us today. pete, you know, i'll go to you first, when you look at -- how the heck do you trade? how do you invest in this kind of market where we're hanging on every little word? >> two different words. you put it perfectly. you trait this market. unless you get those opportunities where you think it really is oversold or the fact we spiked to up up side, this is now a trader's market. i think it will be also we get toward the president talked about christmas dada bainers --

all the way, holding on this fiscal cliff. >> yeah, stef, should note here as well the s&p has retaken 1400, a key psychological level. perhaps is the markets, which are moving higher as we speak, there's a look at the s&p at 1401. perhaps the market is listening to the fact that you've got boehner speaking today. you have obama speaking today, and the pressure seems to be ramped up to get something done, at least to appease the markets. >> unfortunately we have all this uncertainly, until we get some sort of clarification, who knows what, but i think unfortunately you have to -- to pete et cetera point it is a trading environment. we're not necessarily short-term traders, but we are looking for opportunities in those themes that have been working, so

housing, for example, we are looking to buy something back like a weyerhaeuser. i think there's a lot of names there. maybe some of the industries. the psychology behind the move you think that we're seeing why is the market up? >> i think people are examining what he said and looking back at boehner's statement, so maybe they do agree to put taxes on the table, the republicans. i'm going to disagree, i don't think this is a trade market, i think it's a low exposure market, where you have plenty of cash and an investing market. you just can't trade this market. you don't know who is coming out next with a statement, and that could whipsaw you.

the only way to possibly do it is find out when harry reid will be speaking and go short. he's taking it down. mcconnell, in all fairness, really didn't do the markets any favored. you're absolutely right, but i'll tell you one thing, is i do like hearing -- that sentence advertises the market to that possibility. let's go to the former press secretary under jared bernstein, guys, great to have you on. i'm sure you were listening to the president. does at the sound like a president ready to make a deal, give a little bit? >> i think he has carefully not shut the door on putting entitlements on the table, how they'll raise taxes, though he

certainly has shown his preference for the expiration of those top cuts, but look, i think the president made a very strong argument for agreeing on 98% of this, and he added an interesting analytical point, which joe know that he stressed so much in the past, even if you earn above $250,000, you actually do get a break on that first $250,000 by keep the tax rates where they are, not letting the lower tax rates reset. that's real money in terms ofi don't know that it's going to win the day, but i really would like to hear republicans kind of argue why they are not agreeing on this part of the deal. i think that would push things forward. >> on the 98%? >> yeah. the 98% anytime, at the end that's the worst-case scenario, that republicans cave to the president's demand, because he's not asking for any more on that.

so why give it -- why give that up now? >> just because they both agree on that. >> well, they don't -- >> they agree on that. >> why are democrats so afraid of going back to the clinton tax rates? that's a great question. wasn't that the source of prosperity in the '90s? >> i liked that tax structure. >> i know you do, jared. >> i'm just saying that's something they agree on. >> here's the deal. what you saw today was really show business on the case of the white house with an audience behind him. the president did not talk about entitlements, anything he would give on, really zero change today. i want to rise above, but we're not going to get there until -- but actual giving. >> you know, the problem with that prediction, and i know you believe the same thing, that we're going to go over the

fiscal cliff. we're speaking to an investing audience that doesn't want to hear it, already having an extraordinarily difficult time figuring out the market. >> i understand that. the investment community will hear a lot of things it doesn't like -- i'm sorry, i didn't catch all the names -- that the last speaker was saying, when someone says something conciliatory, the markets are going to move on that. that's really a false move. this thing is going to be ugly and fractious for weeks. they're not arguing about the details. tony is right. entitlements have to be discussed, but the most important details, the linchpin comes down to a very simple thing -- will house republicans accept the expiration of the top bush tax cuts versus a pretty vague base broadening idea, whether you like that or not, that is the argument.

>> tony, go ahead. >> will democrats accept action on entitlements and longer-term spending. >> i think they will. >> he's talking about political fundamentals. >> tony or jared, why -- why are entitlements, social security, medicare, everything else. why do the democrats keep holding firm on the fact that needs to be separate from any negotiation on spending. harry reid said it against yesterday, the president doesn't seem to be willing to accept this as part of the grand argument that we're trying to settle? >> i think the president is there. i think the president is willing to bring entitlements into this discussion. i know that the troops are not all lined up on that, and they should be, and hopefully they will be, but i know the president is willing to bring medicare, medicaid, probably not social security, to the table. so i think -- >> you have to bring it all the to the table, but we're not ready for that conversation.

we'll know it when the president does an event like this, and he is talking in fact about entitlements. frankly i would like to see all on the table, including social security and the new health care entitlement program. they all contribute to our long-term fiscal health, and so they should all be on the table. if we want a grand bargain, it's gotting to brand and a bargain. y you. wild market moves the last 48 hours and likely to be that way throughout. let me give you a better answer form the market is up because obama did not say anything about entirements. so he mentioned what they're agreeing on. that's optimism, where the knee-jerk reactions is he's not saying anything, it's the opposite in my view. so hopefully nobody else

will make any comments today, because that's what's driven investors and traders crazy in recent days. coming up on the other side of the break, we will show you what andrew mason said at this conference in new york city. you'll want to hear it as groupon shares are down more than 80% year to date. some reports out there that the board may be looking to replace him. you'll hear from mr. mason himself. as well, we'll head to the pits to find out why gold is down sharply today. first j.c. penney shares are higher. can the holidays help improve its image and stock price? we'll have the fierce debate when "halftime report" comes back.

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well, having a ton of locations doesn't hurt. and a santa to boot! [ chuckles ] right, baby. oh, sir. that is a customer. [ male announcer ] break from the holiday stress. fedex office. welcome back. this is a big day for andrew mason, who is making comments at a conference in the heart of new york city, at the business insider ignition conference. in response to reports that groupon's board could be looking to oust mr. mason. here's what he said. >> groupon is a special kind of

company, and it's -- when you're creating a new category, there's going to be bumps along the road, things that can't be predicted. we're experiencing that volatility now, as we predicted when we did the ipo a year ago. but i -- if i ever thought i wasn't the right guy for the job, i would be the first person to fire myself. perhaps it won't be up to him. many questions remain not only about the business model, but certainly his leadership. the stock is getting a bit of a lift today. what a slide. a big box retailers is making a move today. courtney reagan, what do you see? >> back on the s&p 500 shares of costco up almost 5%. the company announcing a special different like many others, $7 per share. a total of $3 billion.

also, by the way, some pretty good same-store sales, better than expectations. scott? >> clearly these companies are looking to rise above, right? >> these companies aren't fast money. these are for the most part as i just said on twitter, the ultimate slow money. they know they have to get this done by year end, because they don't know what the different tax rate could change to. so they are not waiting around. they are saying loud and clear they think we're going off the cliff. you've seen it from lvs, from costco. that's dangerous, and that's why we're seeing more and more of these special dividends. >> a flood of them almost are day from every conceivable category in the economy as well, right? >> absolutely. i think, you know, for instance, when we were talking about mason

over there at groupon, jerry yang was the guy who started yahoo, and they had to basically get him out -- i know they brought him back in, but they had to get him out of there, because he wasn't the right guy. you have to have the right people pulling the levers here, and i don't think andrew mason is the right guy. let's switch to gold, getting creamed today. falling for the third straight day. jackie deangelis, she and the crew have been all over the moves on gold this week. >> good afternoon, scott. the headline from the pits is certainly clear. sell gold, but you could blame dollar strength. remember when the dollars rises, gold particularly falls. is the pain just starting, or an opportunity to buy? let's talk about the options. anthony, let's start with you. just yesterday, you were making the case for gold. what's behind the sell-off

today? and are you still bullish? >> jackie, yes, i am still bullish. what happened today was right from the open this morning you had one customer selling 15,000 contracts of gold, but let me put that in context. we were downsh and these weren't new shorts coming into the ring. they were long liquidating profit-taking. here's the reason why i still like gold. technically we still held the good support levels near the lows, 1703 in that area. fundamentally, this is when demand for gold picks up, and qe continues even with the fiscal cliff or not being resolved. >> rich, you were also a big one on gold yesterday. you said the charts were setting up for a rally. is the technical picture still intact in would you be buying today? >> okay. >> it looks lick we don't have

rich there. grant, we had a poll yesterday as well. we asked if people were guys gold. 70% of our viewers said that they were. in fact we had 5,000 people vote. do you think that people are perhaps too bullish on gold? is that a one-sided trade? >> jackie, i think people look at gold as a safe haven. with the uncertainty, gold may not be the answer, but that's the answer to the people out there. that's where they're putting their money, is in gold. >> and you are still bullish? >> i am. that 1670, below that, still a very big number. if it starts breaking down again, maybe i rethink that, but as i said, demands picking up and qe does continue. this was one customer that sold these 15,000 contracts. as you said, they were new shorts coming into the market. this was a liquidation. >> so you're holding steady for the bullish tone there. >> don't forget, catch us tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. eastern, we will have a gold special

tomorrow. scott, back over to you. >> thank you so much, jackie. still to come on "halftime report." ross liven son, as the stock makes a stealth rally, but first phil has the latest on toyota's turnaround. >> here's something to pay attention to, the head of toyota motor sales says for the industry we're at the beginning of an increase in transaction prices and auto prices. how much? we'll explain when "halftime report" comes back. we're halfway through the trading day. next we'll cover the boneses, the island reversals, breakouts and breakdowns in "po "pops & drops." plus they say the dumb money trades in the money and smart money trades into the close. so we reveal what that smart money is buying and trading before that final bell tolls. when the "halftime report" continues. gecko (clearing throat)

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welcome back as we make the thurl on halftime. green mountain bursting to the up side after better than

expected earnings, revenue, the company giving a strong outlook. wow -- >> i came yesterday and i had, you know what? i'm not going to get involved until i have satisfaction that the s.e.c. is not really going to crucify it. and then i pointed out a buddy pointed out the filing statement in terms of when they hired kelly. i said this guy his to do an exam before he left the big job managing 65,000 people to come to green mountain. he has to be comfortable with the s.e.c. they restated that earnings for four years. the up side is pretty good. i'm taking a look, not buying it on this spike. >> buy it up 124%? >> the market is getting jiggy with it. i'm not. i'm going to wait for it to pull back. speeds like -- i think it's an attractive growth story. >> scott, let me add one thing, the single-serve cups, that's where their growth was, 47%

growth. when you're talking about a company that might have interested for you, it's like a service contract that will always be there. at costco, bed bath & beyond, but it's about the single-serve cups. you see any kind of a pullback, this company still has growth. >> speaking of pullbacks, doc, what do you see in freeport mcmoran? >> i don't see much other than the same thing we've seen for a while, and that is that these are out of favor. it's not a pure mining play as far as gold, but the big drop in gold, $30-plus, is only hitting these guys, but you look at core . the group was downgraded by deutsche bank after a disappointing status report, i think the ultra-deepwater market is where you said to be, and you

want to take advantage of t the ---ens ko has scale and size to dom strait the industry. so hairs of yahoo! are up nearly 30% over the past threw months and risen shatterly. the man who many thought would get the job joins us live. ross levinsohn is yahoo!'s former interim ceo. good to have you on the show, ross. >> nice to be here. thanks for having me. >> i'm sure you, like the rest of us have watched this stock shoot higher over the last three months. i'm curious to get your opinion on that. do you think it's due to substance or simply buzz? >> i think a bunch of factors. first of all, you have a new person at the head, with a great reputation, dynamic woman. you've been a share buyback going on, you have the

anticipation of what happens with the ali baba ipo, if there is one, and i think there's optimism. it continues to be a great brand. i was disappointed that obama didn't say to use yahoo! to help with his efforts. >> but, look, on that note marissa mayer will be at the white house later today as one of the ceos meeting with the president. let's be fair and honest, you guys have two completely different strategies fro what you would have done with yahoo! more of a media perspective, where she's focusing on mobile and the product 150id. do you think the street is more embracing what she wants to do with this company going forward? >> first of all, i think you have to give her time to decide what she wants to do. she's been very smart, i think, in being low key about it, getting to understand the business, understand the people there, the opportunities around the globe for that business. she hasn't really said exactly

what she's going to do. clearly you have to focus on shifting consumers trends. she has great experience in product and product design, mobile is obviously going to be a tremendous catalyst in the future if yahoo! can get it right, not something yahoo! hasn't been working on. it has more than 100 million users i think on mobile. so you have to give her time to come forward with a strategy, articulate it, set the benchmarks and see how she is does. wall street is giving her the ben filth of the doubt. it's obvious with what's going on with the shares. >> i know you're disappointed that you didn't get the job. anybody would be. what's next for you? >> look, i had a great experience there. i'm sorry i didn't get the job, but i think they have a great leader in marissa. as i was articulating there and driving i believe in the power of premium content and media and how advertising relates to that. i've been looking at a lot of different opportunities.

i've invested in a couple. i just joined the board of zephyr, a pretty hot company in los angeles that focused on blending technology, media and also joined the board of mini-time, a family travel site, working with our companies like bj's, a crossover. at the center of it, i think video is crucial to the future of media. premium video in that respect, and i like to sort of brace that based on my background. premium content like cnbc is not rep applicable. >> and -- we have an agreement to share content with yahoo! as well. ross, great to have you on the show. we wish you well in your next endeavor. >> thank you so much. pete yahoo! has such a gain? >> still too cheap.

there's plenty of upside. when you add to the fact they recently had strong search retch, one of the strongest in a long time, that tells me something about this company. i think there's plenty of up side. up to 40 new cars will make the debut this week. cnbc's phil lebeau has a preview, joined by a very special guest for a "first on cnbc" interview. phil? >> i'm joined by jim lents, president and ceo of toy outo motor sales. you and i were talking earlier, you believe we're at the beginning perhaps of an increase industrywide on prices of new vehicles. give she some percentages and what we're likely to see. >> the cost of new emissions, cost of safety and cost of meeting the new high fuel standards will require new technologies in transmissions, engine management systems, so i think you'll see just the cost of engines alone in the neighborhood of $800 to maybe

$2,000. >> for individual models. in the luxury market, so much being paid on lexus is not ability to pay up with bmw and mercedes, how much is being driven, taking production out of the europe and china, and pushing it into the u.s., and then pushing inkrechbtives. >> i think that's a big product of it. we have a new e.s. this year, so i think we'll get closer, so there's no doubt that the cost of currency playing a big part in this. >> will i chase them, raise incentives for your luxury brands? >> no, it's not worth chasing. it's important that we take care of one customer at a time, sell the volumes we need to sell. >> real quick, we're here at the prius stand. you guys are standing by your position that hybrids is where it's at. >> yes, we are. the market is about 3% hybrid, we're about 14%. we'll continue to push hybrids. >> jim lentz, with his first on

cnbc interview here at the auto show. >> thank thank you very much. stef, you like the parts suppliers? >> i was just going to mention, the fuel emission standard changes borg-warner helps to make those parts, so i think you'll see continued secular growth in that theme. that's the name i like. the stock is done on the backlog weakness. i like that story. >> who would buy one of the main eight omakers? >> when i increase exposure, i'll buy -- you'll see credit easing up. you had tremendous car sales going back to old levels on the highs, almost, without credit being eased. now you're getting eased. it's easy for people to buy cars, lease cars, so i think you have to like the autos. ahead on halftime, should you be buys what ron johnson is selling? two traders, two opinions on that stock. we're debating it after break. dow jones industrial average

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coming up today on a special edition of "power lunch" at 1:00 p.m. eastern -- tyler is live in washington where dozens of ceos are on the hill tell lawmakers to get a deal done to avoid the fiscal cliff. we will ask two senators who are in the crossfire what they would be willing to compromise on. a special conversation with noted author and investor nassim taleb. his new book is called "antifragile." halftime report returns in two.

it is time for our traders to face off over one of this year's biggest battleground stocks. jcpenney has lost nearly half of its value since january as the company struggles to remake its image. steve, john, you guys are going to debate it. i know you love this one. >> i love to be short this one. i'm short again and when jim cramer came out this morning and talked about pvh and related that to jcpenney sales in izod, stock popped up over $1. i shorted some more. >> he still said he didn't like it. >> he came back and said he didn't like it but the market misinterpreted it. so i went through the circulars before black friday and they undercut macy's on every item.

i went through the circulars. couldn't help it. that's the only part of the "times" i was reading that day. but they undercut them by 10% on some items. that means they're going to lose mr money. you can't discount your way to profit apt. ron johnson sold stock way, way, way long ago. his best move since he arrived there. this is going to -- this company is going to have to raise cap fall next year. >> doc, why is he wrong? >> he's wrong because just what he mentioned, about the discounts. because people were complaining they weren't getting the discounts and jcpenney actually listened to that. ron johnson listened to it. katie young one of the producers here said her mother-in-law went into the stores and couldn't say enough great things about how wonderful the stores were and about how deep the discounts were. to steven's point, if they've dropped them to where they can't make money on them -- which i doubt that they have this early in the cycle -- then that's a negative. otherwise, they're going to

increase traffic. people will see the new stores and they will return to the new stores in 2013. >> there's a real danger here of taking a look at 10% of their selling space that's been improved and saying that's what we're about in the company. that's like saying with four guys here that half of america has more hair on their chin than on their head. you got to take a bigger sampli sampling. >> first of all, it's three guys and one lady. >> well, four guys. so 40%. the bottom line -- >> turnarounds take time. >> bottom line is they do take time. next year they could earn. you've got $18 stock. say they double that the year after. it is still agree justegregious overrated. >> let's go final trades.

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